[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1994, Book II)]
[December 17, 1994]
[Pages 2185-2186]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



[[Page 2185]]


The President's Radio Address
December 17, 1994

    The President. Good morning. Today I'm speaking from the Northern 
Virginia Community College in Annandale, Virginia, where I'm joined by 
50 students and the Secretary of Education, Dick Riley, who will speak 
with you in a moment.

    In this holiday season, families come together to reflect on the 
past year and plan for the year ahead. It's a time to be with our 
children and think about their futures. For students near the end of 
high school, it's a time to think about continuing their education after 
graduation.

    Our people face greater challenges than ever to get ahead. For too 
long, too many Americans have worked harder for less. I ran for 
President to change that, to help ordinary people compete and win in the 
new American economy, to restore the American dream for middle class 
families.

    For 2 years, we've pursued an economic strategy that has helped to 
produce over 5 million new jobs. But this growth has not produced higher 
incomes for most Americans, especially those without more than a high 
school education, at the very time it's more important than ever to get 
a good education after high school and then to keep learning throughout 
adult life.

    It's more expensive than ever before. In the decade before I took 
office, the cost of college tripled. Too many people are being priced 
out of a fair shot at high-quality education. If we can't change that, 
we're at risk of losing our great American middle class and of becoming 
a two-tiered society with a few successful people at the top and 
everyone else struggling below.

    Fifty years ago, an American President proposed the GI bill of 
rights. It helped World War II veterans go to college, buy a home, raise 
their children; it built this country. Last Thursday night, I proposed a 
middle class bill of rights, four new ideas to help middle class 
Americans get ahead. Here's how it will work.

    The first proposal is especially important to people at this 
community college. If your family makes less than $120,000, the tuition 
you pay for college, community college, graduate school, professional 
school, vocational education, or worker training will be fully 
deductible from your taxable income, phased up to $10,000 a year. 
Nothing like this has ever been done before.

    Second, if your family makes $75,000 a year or less, you'll receive 
a tax cut phased up to $500 for every child under the age of 13.

    Third, if your family makes less than $100,000 a year, you'll be 
able to put $2,000 a year, tax-free, into an individual retirement 
account, but you'll also be able to withdraw the money, tax-free, for 
education, a first home, or the care of an elderly parent.

    Finally, the middle class bill of rights will take the billions of 
dollars that Government spends on job training and make that money 
directly available to American workers so that you can spend it as you 
decide, when you need to learn new skills to get a new job or a better 
job.

    Of course, we have to pay for all this. On Thursday night I proposed 
dramatic reductions in three more Cabinet departments. And Monday 
morning Vice President Gore and I will outline these cuts in more 
detail. But today I want to ask Secretary Riley to talk about why 
education is a top priority in the middle class bill of rights.

    Secretary Riley.

[At this point, Secretary Riley made brief remarks.]

    The President. Thank you, Secretary Riley.

    My fellow Americans, this middle class bill of rights will further 
the agenda of this administration and, more importantly, our common 
mission as Americans: to expand middle class incomes and opportunities; 
to promote the values of work and family, responsibility and community; 
and to help Americans compete and win in the new American economy of the 
future.

    With all the challenges we face today, ours is still the greatest 
country in the world. Let's keep it that way for our children and for 
future generations. I thank Secretary Riley for joining me and wish you 
all a very happy holiday season.

    Thanks for listening.

[[Page 2186]]

Note: The President spoke at 10:06 a.m. from the Richard J. Ernst 
Community Cultural Center at Northern Virginia Community College in 
Annandale, VA.